I'm so ready for the new year- bring on 2005! As for my resolutions, I plan on taking up a few new hobbies- smoking, drinking, and triathlon.

For all of you techno-gadget freaks out there, a couple of new products on the horizon should have us all shivering with anticipation for the coming 2005.

1. Nikon's next pro camera (D3)

I don't know how many megapixels or frames per second Nikon's next D-series camera will have. I don't even know when they'll announce it (though based on history it would be out in November).

What I do know is this- Canon needs some competition in 2005. We need Nikon to come out with a great camera at a great price. Only at that point will we see equipment prices low enough that photographers can make a living.

2. The new Apple iPod Photo-Journalist

This new iPod Photo-Journalist model is going to be everything the photojournalist needs in a music player/storage device. With a new record-breaking 80 gigabytes of disk space, it will hold all the pirated music any camera-toting copyright-spouting photographer can download. But its other photography-related features make the new iPod-PJ a must have for shutterbugs. And the new pricing scheme shows that Apple has taken some time to really learn about photographers and their finances.

Just like the iPod Photo, the new iPod-PJ will have slideshow capabilities. The iPod-PJ is also an amazing storage device for the photographer on assignment. Using an attachable accessory memory card reader (a snap-on, brick-sized, ten-pound unit available for only $199.00), all of your photos can be transferred to the iPod so that you can later transfer them to some other device that can actually do something with them. Transfer speeds, using the widely available beloved USB 1.0 standard, are speculated at a swift 1 kilobyte per second. (While prototype versions of the iPod-PJ have been known to run out of battery power before a 256MB card could be transferred, there are other snap-on, brick-sized, ten-pound accessory batteries available for $199.00 that should solve that problem.)

The new iPod-PJ will not only play audio, it also records it. And using the iPod's built-in recording abilities, Israeli-developed lie detection software (available for an extra $499.00) measures the stress levels in your subject's voice, alerting you to possible deceptions. Now you'll know for sure whether your editor really means it when he/she says things like:

"That's a great photo."
"This assignment is for the cover."
"I think you're doing a great job."
"I'll cover for you."
"I'm recommending that they give you a raise, but I can't guarantee you'll get it."

In developing the iPod-PJ, Apple has deployed a team of researchers to study the world of photojournalism. Some of you reading this may remember these Apple Team members as they spent time following some of us around, learning our routines and listening to our finely polished complaining skills. Armed with this research, Apple is rolling out the iPod PJ with a groundbreaking approach to pricing. Depending on your position in the business, they have a tailored price and payment plan that they're sure will have all photographers biting. Here is a breakdown:

Photography Students & Interns: $1,999.00 - Must be purchased with student loan money. And these loans cannot be fully paid off until nine years from purchase of the iPod-PJ.

Weekly Newspaper Staff Photographers: Not available.

Daily Newspaper Staff Photographers: $2,999.00 - Must be purchased by the photographer (not the newspaper) with a personal credit card (18% or higher interest rate mandatory, which then must be paid off over a series of years by a series of minimum payments as your children go without dental care).

Magazine Staff Photographers - Free.

Freelance Photographers - Apple will give freelance photographers one (1) free Apple iPod-PJ once the photographer has signed the eight page nondisclosure contract, which basically grants Apple the rights to all of your photographs, forbids you from organizing with other freelancers, and constrains you from talking about any of this with anyone, ever.

Enjoy the music!

(Trent Nelson is the Chief Photographer at the Salt Lake Tribune and is a frequent contributor to the Sports Shooter Newsletter.)